Posted
by
timothy
on Saturday May 14, 2011 @02:49PM
from the but-the-monster-won't-die dept.

adeelarshad82 writes "I'm sure most of us looking for an HDMI cable have been in a situation where a store clerk sidles up, offers to help and points to some of the most expensive HDMI cables — because apparently these are 'superior cables' which we all absolutely need for the best possible home theater experience. Well, as it turns out the claims are, for the vast majority of home theater users, utter rubbish. According to tests ran on five different HDMI cables, ranging in price from less than $5 up to more than $100, HDMI brands really don't matter."

I once wanted a 6ft HDMI cable right away. I noted that they were available at a popular online cable store for $10, and set out to find one for $20 or so, considering that to be an acceptable mark up for the immediacy required. Couldn't find any for less than $30, most stores sold them for $50 or $60. They are either price fixing or just individually deciding to rip people off. Either way I just went home, paid $12 after shipping, and waited for them to show up.

Technically theres no such thing as a digital signal; look at it on an oscilloscope and its a far cry from the impossible squarewave used to represent them.The receiver has to make a choice when to switch a 0 to a 1, with long slopes, noise and ringing this can cause problems even if its a "digital" signal.Equipment today is good enough that its "never" a problem, signals get reclocked and cleaned up, crc etc.

So no, you shouldnt buy expensive hdmi cables, but you shouldnt mistake the abstract digital concept for its real, messy electrical representation either.

i'm blowing my mod points to reply to your bunk. It's digital, homeboy, it either shows up or it doesn't. if you are referring to error codes causing degradation, what could possibly be intermittent? It either connects (works) or it doesnt. It's not like a scratched CD with periodic errors. There is no middle ground. This analog holdover mindset is grating.